Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1887-01-02
TIE HEATHEN CHINESE.


To the Editor of the Eagle.
In this age OF misrepresentation and in
Justice, | like to take peep at both sides
Of question. We are too apt, Mr. Edi
tor. to form our opinions, as We do oul
dress, according TO the prevailing fashion
In my travels west, three years ago,
found some excellent servants who were
Chinese. They were good cooks, aad
seemed to have no wills Of their own, out
side Of the duties required Of them. Other:
were engaged in market gardening; anG
called ont the anathemas of their American
competitors, on account of their superior
skill, and inferior prices. This was, OF
course, good for the consumers, who did
not complain.
China has, no doubt, poured the ''scun
and off scourings' of her proletarians into
San Francisco. and along the Pacific coast.
They are as bad lot, in the main, as 1.-THE
savagery Of the city, described by Henry
George; but they do not represent the bet
ter class of ChineSe-Or the moral disci-
plined wage wOrker-thcre or here / was
led TO these thoughts, by an article in the
North American Review OF December, by
Gail Hamilton, extract Of which, [
hereunto append;
Mrs S L. Baldwin. missionary of
the Methodist board in China, now living
in East Boston, addressed to the present
congress petition which was presented in
the senate. PRAYING that she might he al
lowed r., i,nn,rf a bacthan N tbis pnr,ot
because of his great superiority to The
Christians here: because the private virtues
of the heather showed far stronger signs
of thrift than our own. That | may not
however undesignedly, misrepresent testi
mony give her own words: During a
long residence in China, rs the wife of q
missionary | have been accustomed
to Chneee servants. | know the
peace and comfort possible with
them. One cook served us during the en-
tire twenty years we lived in China. |
have made many efforts to secure good
and needed service from the help found in
this land have given four years patient
trial to those Of every nationality, not eX-
cepting our own. / have paid the highest
usual wages have planned my work with
a view to my servants comfort, have
keeping in mind the golden rule. have paid
them promptly. and in return have only
asked that they do properly the work they
have agreed to perform. But all in vain.
Not one has seemed to feel under the
slightest obligation to give any fair return
for wages received, or 10 have the slightest
regard To my interests. UntidincSS. badly
cooked food. waste. breakage. imperti-
nence and dis0hedience have exhausted my
purse and my patience. and imperiled the
comfort and health Of myself and my fam
ily Notwithstanding the fact that in
China our servants loved us, and left our
employ rather reluctantly, | might still
think that in some way | am unwi1tingiy
to blame for this unhappy state of affairs,
had no; found in very excellent &c
quaintance in this country. that my expert
ence is simply that Of large majority Of
houSekeeperS Of this land. There
fore earnestly petition thst you
will make an exception 20 the anti-ChineSe
law in my favor and allow me To import a
Chinese servant 1t is the only solution Of
the problem Of housekeeping in this coun-
try now.
The above speaks for itself. and is all
the more valuable. rs being uninientional
testimony Mrs. Baldwin was in earnest.
and meant what she said. Some of the
rest of us suffering mortalS would like to
have good, efficient and faithful servants
1t would be the Drumming drop in cur cup
of joy Would not the spreading city Of
the plains like to have few? If China
would only send few domestic misSiona-
ries over here. the money that has been
wasted in sending ours over there would
not be in vain. Such an interchange of
misSionerv effort might cure Us Of some Of
our prejuaices, and help us
ssTo seize the good wherever found,
On Christian or on heather ground"
A cansumation of liberaliiy devoutly to be
desired, 50 thinks your faithful
BETSY TRoTwooD
Leon, Kan, Dec. 90, 1886.